KEY WEST FISHING REPORT
Yellowtail snapper made up a large part of the August catch, with lane snapper also coming over the rail in good numbers.
Our summer night trips also caught the tail end of the grey (mangrove) snapper spawn during August. That was specifically part of the night-fishing bite, while yellowtail and lane snapper made up much of what we were seeing during our regular August fishing.
This report comes from our own trips aboard the 56-foot Gulfstream IV out of Historic Charter Boat Row. We generally fish roughly 3–10 miles offshore in about 20–100+ feet of water, depending on conditions and where we're fishing — see our Key West reef fishing trip for how a typical day runs, or our summer night fishing trip for the night bite.
What's Biting in Key West
Based on what we saw in August 2026 aboard the Gulfstream IV.
September 2026: no fishing report — Gulfstream was out of service at the dock for scheduled maintenance, including two new engines. Read the September update.
🔥 Hot
- Yellowtail Snapper
- Lane Snapper
🌙 Night Fishing / Seasonal
- Grey snapper — tail end of the summer spawning activity
Our summer night fishing trips are done for the season — the next one is scheduled for June 15, 2027.
Recent Featured Catches
Real fish from recent trips aboard the Gulfstream party boat. Pulled straight from our monthly Key West fishing report archive.
July 2026
Grey snapper kept the summer going strong — the after-dark bite did it again.
July 2026 — One of the keepers that came over the rail. We ran a daytime trip and a night trip on each fishing day that month, and the night trips were the better bite.
June 2026
Grey snapper were the main story — and the night trips were the better bite.
June 2026 — Another fish from the same summer run. Same boat and the same local waters, but a different bite once the sun went down.
May 2026
Yellowtail snapper stacking behind the boat — muttons, lanes, and red grouper opening day.
May 1, 2026 — Opening day of red grouper season and the bite delivered. This thick keeper came up out of 45 ft on the hard bottom just a few miles offshore, eating a chunk of fresh squid on a knocker rig. Happy customer with the thumbs up — first grouper of the season is always the best one.
Key West Fishing Calendar by Season
Spring (Mar–May)
Mutton snapper peak, cero mackerel blitzes on the chum slick, and red grouper opens May 1.
Summer (Jun–Aug)
Yellowtail snapper insanity, lane snapper and porgy filling the cooler, summer night fishing for mangrove snapper. See our Summer Night Fishing trip.
Fall (Sep–Nov)
Kingfish runs heat up, cero mackerel everywhere, blackfin tuna on the deeper structure. Beautiful weather window.
Winter (Dec–Feb)
Big mangrove snapper, kingfish thick on the reef edge, cobia on the wrecks. Coolest water of the year — fish hold tight to structure.
Fishing Report FAQ
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Fishing Report Archive
Browse past months to see what was biting and plan around the seasons.
No fishing report this month — the work was happening at the dock.
Grey snapper kept the summer going strong — the after-dark bite did it again.
Grey snapper were the main story — and the night trips were the better bite.
Yellowtail snapper stacking behind the boat — muttons, lanes, and red grouper opening day.
Cero mackerel blitzing the reef edge and muttons feeding hard on the morning tide.
Lane snapper feeding hard, king mackerel still running, and ceros showing up daily.
Lane snapper filling the cooler with kingfish and cobia rounding out the day.
Lane snapper stacked on the patches with yellowtails working the chum slick.
Kingfish thick on the reef edge with grunts and lanes filling the cooler on the bottom.
Kingfish run heating up with blackfin tuna and steady yellowtails on the reef.
Fall transition in full swing — ceros everywhere, blackfin tuna, and steady yellowtails.
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